NBC chimes (Jan 1947-Dec 1948)

2 NBC CHIMES Corinne Pearson, Editor Lucille Sharp, Managing Editor A MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT As you all know, NBC is one of the wholly owned services of Radio Corporation of America. RCA itself is a publicly owned corporation, with a net worth of $101,876,817. It has some 215,000 stockholders — men, women and institutions, no one of whom owns as much as two per cent of RCA's stock. They own RCA, and are therefore the actual owners of NBC. Every year RCA mails to each stockholder a report of the operations of its various services during the previous year, together with a consolidated financial statement. The statement for 1946 shows the following gross Niles Trammell RCA (chiefly the manufacturing business) $159,959,655 NBC 61,067,034 RCA Communications & Radiomarine Corporation 19,946,709 Less intercompany transactions (subtract) 3,992,628 Total gross income $236,980,770 Translating the above table into simpler figures, the average dollar that the RCA family received in 1946 came from the following sources: RCA NBC RCAC & Radiomarine Less intercompany transactions 67.5 cents 25.8 " 8.4 " 1.7 " 100.0 " What happened to this gross income ? Here is where it went : Cost of raw materials, supplies, rent, research, sustaining program talent, payments to affiliated stations, administration, and other operating expenses Wages and salaries Taxes All other expenses Dividends to stockholders Carried to surplus; in other ivords, ploughed back in the business $124,442,329 90,990,036 5,292,942 5,270,410 5,924,137 5,060,916 $236,980,770 The first and largest item is mostly the cost of necessary goods and services bought from others. If this figure were analyzed, the major portion of it would be found to represent wages paid to workers outside the RCA family. For example, in the case of NBC, sustaining program talent expenses are wages; payments to affiliated stations help to meet the station payrolls, etc. At the year-end RCA was furnishing direct employment to 39,361 men and women, and indirectly was providing jobs for many thousands more outside our own companies. I think these figures are interesting, not only with respect to RCA, but also because they furnish an illustration of how a large business operates under the American enterprise system. Bill Buschgen THEN. ..AND NOW "It will probably surprise you but I started out to be a doctor," announced Bill Buschgen, Salesman in National Spot Sales. William Beverly Buschgen is a tall thin man with a crooked grin and an easy, friendly way of talking. And, like so many young men at NBC, his career began in Guest Relations. Actually, though, his story begins at Lafayette College when he was a pre-med student. At Lafayette, Bill took time out from the lab to do a radio show called "Your College Reporter" on the local Easton, Pa. station, WEST. He found the experience so stimulating that he revised his plans in favor of broadcasting. After graduation he found himself on his way to New York and NBC. Bill started as a Page in Guest Relations. This was in 1938, when his ambition was to be an announcer. These hopes were quickly dimmed after several auditions. "I was awful," he recalls. But by that time he had become a Guide and the enjoyment he derived from talking and being with people spurred his interest in another field of radio — sales. While Bill's ambitions crystalized, he continued up the Guest Relations channels from Guide to Guide Trainer to Control Desk Clerk. Then, in July of 1940, he was transferred to Research to work on the all-county survey and later to do reports and estimates for Sales Traffic. Gradually he was absorbing all the complicated details of getting a program on the air. Twenty-two days after Pearl Harbor, Bill became a Private in the Army. Nine months later he was a First Sergeant and was assigned to OCS at Fort Monmouth. Shortly after winning his bars he shipped overseas, won two battle stars and his Captaincy before returning to the States again. The Army had a way of proving what a man had to offer in leadership and administrative ability. Bill passed the test with flying colors. After 4,/2 years in uniform, Bill returned to NBC and talked over his future with an interviewer in Personnel. He still wanted to get into sales, but no opening in that field was available. He was offered a job as a Statistician in Research until such an opening did occur. He took the job, which he considers a lucky break because it familiarized him even more with ratings and other special studies used constantly as sales ammunition. Only five months later, a vacancy did occur in the National Spot Sales PROMOTIONS EUGENE ALEXY is now a Secretary-Clerk in the Mail Room, a promotion from Outgoing Mail Clerk. DONALD AXT has been promoted from Recording Messenger to Recording Clerk in Engineering. EARL BARRY goes from Messenger-Clerk to Packer in Engineering. HELEN BEEBE has been upped from Receptionist-Clerk to ClerkTypist in National Spot Sales. CHARLES BENNIS goes from Assistant Transmission Engineer to Recording Supervisor in Engineering. JEANNE BUCKEY has been promoted from Cashier in Guest Relations to Executive Receptionist in General Service. ANNA CAREY leaves General Service where she was a Typist to be a Steno-Clerk in WNBC. JOSEPH CERVONI has been promoted from Messenger Clerk to Night Postoffice Clerk in the Mail Room. WILLIAM FORRESTER won a promotion from Mail-Messenger to Outgoing Mail Clerk in General Service. ARTHUR HAMILTON has been upped from Billing Clerk to Accounting Clerk in Radio Recording. JEANNE HOOSE goes from Guide to Cashier in Guest Relations. STEPHEN RIDDLEBERGER, formerly an Accounting Clerk, is now an Assistant Accountant in Radio Recording. ANN SCUDERI goes from StenoClerk to Secretarial Assistant in WNBC. ECONOMY SUGGESTIONS WANTED The Suggestion Committee announces that it is planning to make liberal awards to any NBC employee who submits a suggestion or suggestions that can be used to effect efficiency and economy in company operations. They ask you to give the matter deep thought and address your suggestions to Ashton Dunn, Room 508. Department for which Bill Buschgen was chosen. "Everything has certainly broken right for me at NBC," he exclaims. "Now I want to stick with Spot Sales and see how far I can climb." As the junior salesman, Bill has a small office and a busy telephone for contacting agencies and clients. Just stop him in the hall some time and ask him how he likes his new job. He'll smile broadly and say, "As far as I'm concerned there is no other business!"